According to participants in the Chicago Fed's annual Economic Outlook Symposium, the nation's economic growth in 2009 is forecasted to be very weak, with inflation moving lower and the unemployment rate higher. The housing sector is predicted to remain weak, and light vehicle sales are expected to decline further.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago held its twenty-second annual Economic Outlook Symposium on December 5, 2008. More than 90 economists and analysts from business, academia and government attended the conference. This Chicago Fed Letter reviews the forecasts from the previous Economic Outlook Symposium for 2008 and then analyzes the forecasts for 2009 and summarizes the presentations from the most recent symposium.